The basic stenographic machine mechanism today used by court reporters has changed little since the invention of the machine over 40 years ago. The basic stenographic machine is shown in a variety of patents. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,319,273, 2,387,330, 2,392,078, and 2,292,781. Modern stenographic machines have adapted the basic mechanism to digital computer technology through the addition of such items as floppy disk drives, random access computer memories, internal modems and the like. Despite the addition of such technological, the basic mechanical mechanism remains essentially intact.
One of the mechanical holdovers of the basic stenographic mechanism is the ribbon and inking mechanism. To this day, virtually all stenographic machines, whether augmented with computer technology or not, still use a roll of ribbon attached to small spools, much like that of an old manual typewriter. The ribbon travels back and forth and must be continually re-inked by the reporter, usually with a small bottle of ink carried by the reporter.
Manual re-inking of the ribbon is messy, particularly in view of the permanent ink that must be used. It also requires that the reporter carry an ink bottle that is subject to leaking. Furthermore, a reporter's stopping of a deposition or the like in order to re-ink the machine is a distraction and a disruption of the proceedings. What is more, changing of the ribbon and insertion of a new ribbon also typically involves getting ink on the reporter's hands, and occasionally his or her clothes, which is obviously undesirable.
One way to alleviate these problems is through the use of ribbon cartridges. Two United States patents have previously been issued for ribbon cartridges for stenographic machines. These patents are: U.S. Pat. No. 4,469,456, issued to Fitzgerald on Sep. 4, 1984 and entitled "Disposable Ribbon Carrier for a Stenograph Reporting Machine," and U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,413, issued to Seplin on Sep. 15, 1981 and entitled "Cartridge and Ribbon for use with a Single Spool Stenotype Machine." The '413 patent also identifies other types of ribbon cartridges that have been designed for various non-stenographic printing applications. These two prior patents, which discuss in more detail the need for a ribbon cartridge, nevertheless fail to provide a satisfactory mechanism. In particular, these patents disclose little more than a shroud around the standard ribbon and ribbon spool. If the ribbon is low on ink, then it must be re-inked in a manner similar to the standard ribbon.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to eliminate typewriter-style ribbons in stenographic machines.
It is a further object of the invention to eliminate manual re-inking of ribbons in stenographic machines.
Yet another object of the invention is to allow a ribbon to be quickly changed in a stenographic machine.
A further object of the invention is to simplify the construction of ribbon cartridges for stenographic machines.